This is, more or less, the view from YCO's office in Monaco. I have spared you the equivalent view from our studio windows but there is a bus stop with some graffiti, a branch of Dreams with beds on permanent 50% sale and a bloke shouting at no one in particular. I can live with this, just about.
YCO, however, have just upped the ante in a big way with their new website http://www.ycoyacht.com/ and this is annoying and admirable in equal measure. Annoying because I know just how much time it takes to beat things into shape, write decent copy and still emerge with something that people want to read. And admirable for much the same reasons and that it is following a fresh path. In fact, we sat around like kids for a while marvelling at the tour round their absurdly cute room with artfully placed models of cars, framed pictures of beautiful people and shells. Oh, and a drawing from Terry Disdale's studio. Clearly some sort of dream sequence.
And we don't accept, for one minute, the premise that there are YCO team members who relax by sailing, watching Chelsea FC and sliding pizzas into wood ovens. Obviously.
But, as types by our own admission who shout at anodyne websites, we think this is great. As Charlie Birkett realised, we don't really want the news of the "major price reduction" ( nor, I presume, does the guy who just bought the sistership ). We want strong images. Lots of them. And a feeling for who you are dealing with, and what they care about.
So well done you guys. We are off to populate our dream sequence room. We've got a saxophone, a cocker spaniel and a model Tiger Moth. That's a good start.
